Seal



April 2, 194e. A N, HOERTZ 2,397,486

' SEAL Filed Nov. 29, 1943 y/Vor/vzoufl Hoer/Z3 Patented' Apr. 2, 1946 SEAL ' Norman Hoertz, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to Thompson Products, Inc., a corporation of Ohio Application November 29, 1943, Serial No. 512,165

2 Claims. v

' bustion engine, but it should be understood that the seals of this invention are not limited to such usage since they are generally applicable for sealing relatively movable parts such as relative rotating parts. n

In accordance with this invention, a pump casing is provided with a hub having an annular sealing end face and receiving a pump shaft therethrough. The shaft is grooved adjacent the annular end sealing face of the hub and a pump impeller is secured on the shaft in spaced relation from thisgroove. A sealing ring or washer,

preferably composed of compressed graphitic carbon, loosely embraces the shaft and has an end face for riding on the annular end sealing face v of the hub. A spring acts on the ysealing ring or washer to urge the same against the hub'end face and a deformable diaphragm ring preferably composed of rubber or rubber-like material has a beaded outer peripheral portion seated in an internal Vgroove in the sealing washer or ring and a beaded portion around the hole therethrough seated in the groove of the shaft. The inner and outer beads of the diaphragm ring are connected through an integral readily deformable web portion.A The inner beadl sealingly engages the shaft while the outer Vbead sealingly engages the sealing washer or ring. 'I'he shaft can wobble or tilt without moving the sealing washer because the diaphragm ring will deform to absorb such wobbling or tilting movements without transmitting them to the sealing washer. As a result, the sealing washer is always maintained in full sealing contact with the end face of the hub.

It is, then, an object of this invention to proy Vvide a seal construction of the type having relatively movable seal parts in sliding face-to-face engagement with a readily deformable diaphragm` ring sealingly engaging oney ofI the seal parts and one of the parts to be sealed.

A still further object of this invention is to lprovide a'shaft seal of the type having relatively rotating seal members in face-to-face engagement withv a simple beaded' diaphragm ring sealingly engaging the shaft and the movable seal 'part and adapted. to accommodate wobbling or tilting Cl. 286-11) V movements of the shaft without transmitting such movements to the rotating seal part.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a shaft seal for the pumps and the like wherein a simple one-piece diaphragm ring sealingly connects one of the seal parts with the shaft and deforms to accommodate relative tilting between the seal part and the shaft.

A still further object of this invention is to prol0 vide an inexpensive pump shaft seal wherein a rubber-like diaphragm member is stretched over the shaft to sealingly engage the same and is pressed into a rotating seal part for sealingly Aconnecting said part with the shaft.

Other and further objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the annexed sheet of drawings which, by way of preferred example only, illustrates one embodiment of the invention. v

On the drawing: Figure 1 is a central vertical cross-sectional view, with parts in elevation, of a water pump for an internal combustion engine equipped with a shaft seal according to this invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary horizontal crosssectional view taken substantially along the line II-II of Figure 1.

. Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view sim- 3'0 ilar to Figure 1 illustrating the seal construction.

As sh'own on the drawing: In Figure 1 the reference numeral Ill designates generally a water pump for an internal combustion engine. The pump I Il has 'a casing II denning a pumping chamber I2. The casing I l has an inlet I3 communicating with the pumping chamber I2 and the pumping chamber is open-topped to communicate directly with the interior of an internal'` combustion engine for circulating water 40 through the engine.

The casing Il also hasa central hub portion I4 receiving a liner or bushing I5 therethrough. The hub portion Il has a smooth annular end face I6 communicating with the pumping chamber I2.

A pump shaft II extends from outside of the casing II through the liner or bushing I5 into the pumping chamberV I2. The casing II carries a ball bearing I8 rotatably supporting. the shaft I'I. The bearing I8 has an inner race ring press- -fltted onto the shaft to hold the shaft against axial movement relative to the casing. A pulley I9 is ixedly secured on the end of the shaft pro- Jecting beyond the casing I I for rotating the shaft from a fan belt (not shown) as is conventional It oftnehubuasat nu. y

An impeller 20 is secured on the portion of the 2 I v y 2,397,480

in internal combustion engine water pump systems.' Y Y The shaft I1. is grooved adjacent theend face shaft projecting into the pumping chamber I2. This impeller 20 has vanes 20a around the periphery thereof for pumping water. from the inlet I3 through the open top' of the pumping chamber I2. An ,annular skirt 20h depends fromv the impeller 20 into spaced relation from the endface I6 of the hub and provides a cylindrical chamber 2`I around the shaft I1. Theskirt has slots 20c, preferably diametrically opposed as shown in Figure 2 extending axially inward from the lower end thereof.

A sealing washer or ring 22 loosely embraces the shaft I1 and has an end face 22a riding on the end face I6 of the hub I4. The sealing washer or ring 22 hasy an internal groove 22h therein which can. have a semi-circular cross section as shown in Figure 3 or a flat bottom and at side walls as shown in Figure 1. The ring 22 has an end face 22e.` opposite the sealing end face 22a thereofV which is preferably provided with a large opening such as 23 giving free access to the groove 22h. Integral lugs or keys 22d project radially from the ring 22 into the slots 20c of the skirt. These lugs have a sliding fit in the slots but serve to key the ring and impeller together for co-rotation.

In accordance with this invention a rubber "diaphragm ring 24 sealingly connects lthe shaft I'I and the sealing washer 22. This diaphragm ring 24 has a bead 24a around the opening there- 2 through adapted to be stretched over the shaft l", and snapped into the groove IIa thereof for sealingly seating in the groove. 'I'he diaphragm ring 24 also has a deformable beaded peripheral portion 24h for insertion through the opening 23 of the sealing washer 22 to snap into the groove 22h of the sealing washer and sealingly engage the groove Wall. As indicated above, and as shown in Figure 3, the groove'wall 22h is preferably of segmental circular cross section to conl form with the contour of the bead 24b but, as shown in Figure 1, the groove 22h can'be flat bottomed and the bead 24h can sealingly engage such a flat bottomed groove at several DOints such as the side walls and bottomof the groove.

A readily deformable web 24c joins the inner and outer beads of the diaphragm ring 24.

A metal washer 25 loosely embraces the shaft I'I and -is slidable in the skirt 2017l of` the impeller 20 to be bottomed on the face 22e of the sealing washer.

A coil spring 26 is disposed in the skirt 20h of the impeller 20 and is compressed between the impeller and the metal washer 2i for urging the sealing washer 22 into sealing engagement with theendface I6 ofthehub I4. I v

The sealing washer 22 and metal. washer 25 are -slidingly guided by the skirt 2Ilb of the impeller and can lbe moved by the spring 2E through deection of the web portion 24c of the diaphragm ring 24, since the sealing washer 22 and metal washer have holes therethrough of larger diameter than the shaft I'I. The shaft can tilt or wobble` without contacting these members 'and the tilting or wobbling movement of the shaft will be absorbed by the deformable diaphragm `ring 24 without being transmitted to the sealing washer 22. As a result, the sealing washer 22 is always maintained by the spring 26 in full sliding sealing engagement with theend face of the hub I4. The diaphragm sealingly connects the Washer 22 with the shaft to prevent leakage from the pumping chamber through the sealing washer and of course the sealing engagement between the face 22a of the sealing washer and the face I6 of the hub I4 prevents leakage from the pumping chamberv around the sealing washer. As a result, the pumping chamsembled and replaced. The diaphragm ring is easily stretched over the shaft to snap in a groove in the shaft and is easily deformed into the groove in the sealing washer.

It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and'it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims. j t t y I claim as my invention: v n A ,n 1. A seal construction comprising-an internally grooved sealing washer,v a shaft .projecting through said washer having a groove interina; diate the end faces of the vWasher,,anda de; formable diaphragm having `inner 'and .Out

beads connected through an integralfwebpor#y tion sealingly engaging the groove in'theseah ing washer andthe groove in the shaft. "9*" 2. A seal construction comprising an interally grooved sealing washer, andwa one-piece rub'- ber-like deformable diaphragm ring having "an outer peripheral bead portion sealingly seated in the groove of the Washer together with an in;y ner.y peripheral 'bead `portion adapted to sealingly engage a member extending through the sealing washer.` 'l

NORMAN HOERTZ.' v 

